Cris White has been named by the Board of Directors as the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority’s (CHFA) to head the organization.

Officially, he is the finalist for its open executive director/chief executive officer position. His official appointment will be made pending the state mandated 14-day notification period and barring any information that would affect his candidacy for the position.

The position became open after Roy Alexander, CHFA executive director of almost nine years retired in December of last year.

“CHFA is uniquely positioned to serve Coloradans who are seeking affordable housing during these challenging economic times. And we have an even greater opportunity to help the state in its economic development endeavors,” said CHFA Board of Directors Chair, Joel Rosenstein. “We believe that Cris has the right skills, vision and experience to lead CHFA and to help Colorado families achieve their dreams.”

White was appointed the interim executive director and COO in January. He has been CHFA’s chief operating officer since January 2001. He joined CHFA in 1988, serving in various capacities until January 1996. He worked as a business development executive with an international equipment and real estate mortgage lender, and then rejoined CHFA in September 1996 as the director of asset management. He has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Regis University. He lives in Denver.

The Associated Press reported Thursday that the number of U.S. households facing foreclosure in January increased 15 percent from the same month last year, and a surge in cash-strapped homeowners who’ve fallen behind on mortgages could be on the way.
More than 315,000 households received a foreclosure-related notice in January, RealtyTrac Inc. reported. That number is down nearly 10 percent from 349,000 in December, which saw the third highest total since the company began tracking foreclosure data in 2005.
In January, one in 409 homes were sent a filing, which includes default notices, scheduled foreclosure auctions and bank repossessions. Banks repossessed more than 87,000 homes last month, down 5 percent from December but still up 31 percent from January 2009.
January marked the 11th straight month with more than 300,000 properties receiving a foreclosure filing. The numbers could stay above that level as unemployed homeowners who have tried to keep up with their mortgages finally start missing monthly payments.
Mortgage financier Fannie Mae reported in late January that the rate of borrowers who have a conventional loan on a house and are seriously delinquent was 5.29 percent in November, more than doubling the rate of 2.13 percent in November 2008. Borrowers are considered seriously delinquent if they are past due by three months or more, or are in foreclosure.
“There’s a lot of foreclosures in the pipeline, and the number is going to continue to get bigger,” said Patrick Newport, an economist with IHS Global Insight.
Last month’s foreclosure activity followed a pattern similar to that of a year ago, when a double-digit percentage increase in December was followed by a 10 percent drop in January.
The dip in January’s numbers may be due to processing delays by lenders during the end-of-year holidays, said Rick Sharga, senior vice president of RealtyTrac, which is based in Irvine, Calif.

The Denver office of real estate auctioneer Sheldon Good & Co., will include resort homes in Keystone, Breckenridge and Arrowhead in the March 19 auction of seven properties.

The Vail Daily reported Thursday that the auction is part of a liquidation required by the chapter seven bankruptcy of a members-only destination club called High County Club.

According to Sheldon Good’s Web page the properties will be sold regardless of the amount of the highest bid. Suggested opening bids are as low as $150,000.

The properties include a two-bedroom condo in the Aspenwood Lodge in Arrowhead Village. There is a four-bedroom single-family home in Breckenridge on the auction block as well as a three-bedroom townhome with traditional architecture in the Settlers’ Creek neighborhood of Keystone.

All of the details can be found at Sheldon Good’s web page.

This home in Arrowhead made CNBC's list of America's most impressive ski homes.CNBC cable news network recently released a list of America’s 10 most impressive ski homes, but Steamboat’s grandest second homes apparently weren’t impressive enough.

Tops on the list was a 15,478-square foot see-through house on Aspen’s Red Mountain valued at $35 million. Another Aspen home was second on the list at $24.95 million and a home in Jackson ranked third in terms of wow factor – it’s priced at $29.5 million.

New England is represented on the list by a $16 million home in Stowe, Vt. Other ski areas that made the list include Park City, Utah and Sun Valley, Utah.

The closest home to the Yampa Valley is, you guessed it, down Colorado Highway 13 at Arrowhead in the Vail Valley, where Chateau de mon reve (castle of my dreams) has seven bedrooms. For $11.95 million you get a 25-foot waterfall in the outdoor dining area and a bunch of bathrooms. The home is listed for sale by Realtor Sondra Slappy.
CNBC cable news network recently released a list of America’s 10 most impressive ski homes, but Steamboat’s grandest second homes apparently weren’t impressive enough.

Tops on the list was a 15,478-square foot see-through house on Aspen’s Red Mountain valued at $35 million. Another Aspen home was second on the list at $24.95 million and a home in Jackson ranked third in terms of wow factor – it’s priced at $29.5 million.

New England is represented on the list by a $16 million home in Stowe, Vt. Other ski areas that made the list include Park City, Utah and Sun Valley, Utah.

The closest home to the Yampa Valley is, you guessed it, down Colorado Highway 13 at Arrowhead in the Vail Valley, where Chateau de mon reve (castle of my dreams) has seven bedrooms. For $11.95 million you get a 25-foot waterfall in the outdoor dining area and a bunch of bathrooms. The home is listed for sale by Realtor Sondra Slappy.

See more photos of the impressive ski homes here

The total number of homes of all kind that sold in Routt County in 2008 was 374.

Thirty-nine homes sold for prices between $1 million and $1.5 million, according to Bruce Carta of Land Title Guarantee.

In terms of unit volume, the price point between $300,000 and $500,000 was most active with 102 transaction.